Sunday, October 28, 2012

When school districts partner with businesses to create real world opportunities for students, everyone wins. In Farmington, 13 schools are bringing consumer math to students and with the help of adults and an IOC Credit Union staff member, students are hiring staff, balancing deposits and are providing excellent customer service. The following story takes place at East Middle School where students are working to provide a quality experience for their classmates.In the story below which appears in the Oakland Press online section and their Noon at News broadcast, students are finding out what the real world is like as a consumer or worker. http://youtu.be/BFDjuq6wcXw

At the O-Tech Campus located in Clarkston, the students of Paul Galbenski are involved in a nationwide straw poll on who will most likely be elected as President. The class is also looking at campaign commercials and how negative ads play a role in the presidential election.The video will play in the Oakland Press and appears below. One thing is for sure is that students are looking to take charge of their own learning from the guidance of a good teacher.ONCE AGAIN... I WILL BE MORE THAN HAPPY TO SHOOT VIDEO STORIES THAT SHOW TEACHERS USING DATA, SHOW STUDENTS TAKING CHARGE OF THEIR OWN LEARNING AND TEACHERS SHOWING COLLEGIALITY. http://youtu.be/VQMdkJJobps

Ms. Kumon and her 4th Grade Class are preparing for a big conference Clarkston Schools has with Howard Gardner, the renouned researcher who has formed the hypothesis for differentiated instruction. The higher level thinking seminar will happen this upcoming weekend in Clarkston and classrooms around the district are excited about the possibilities the conference will bring. In the video clip to be played in the Oakland Press, she talks about how her class is preparing. In this lesson, her class is paired up and is summerizing what they have learned in the lesson so far. The public is welcome and details are below.http://youtu.be/hJwybMBVYk0

Parent/Community Learning: Project Zero Clarkston—

A Culture of Thinking

Parent Strand

When: Saturday, November 3, 2012

9:00 a.m. – 4:30 p.m.

What: Parents and community members will engage with Harvard

Project Zero Researchers, Ron Ritchhart, Howard Gardner, and attend sessions with teachers and researchers related to parents and a Culture of Thinking.

Thursday, October 25, 2012

Fox 2's Murray Feldman was at the Waterford Chamber of Commerce and had plenty to say from the business/job prospects of college graduates to what the employment prospects are for adults and the business climate.

The stories are posted on the Oakland Press website and will appear on the News at Noon Broadcast as well.

Wednesday, October 24, 2012

Teachers are quite often going into their own pockets to fund the projects that they would like to have done in their own classrooms that there are not in the budget today or any day. What makes her and other teachers who have decided to become involved with donorschoose.org is she decided both her and her students needed an edge to do the special things her classroom deserves. Her story and her triumph is below and you can take your classroom to the next level by checking out the website. She was so serious about the project and helping other teachers, she went door to door in Joplin, Missouri after the devastating tornado in 2011 and convinced many teachers they could rebuild their classrooms by letting potential donors connect themselves to worthwhile teaching projects.

Roy J. Akers

Teachers Are Unsung Heroes

At DonorsChoose.org, we believe that teachers are unsung heroes. I want to tell you about one of them.
Debby
Guardino is a special education teacher in Chesapeake, Virginia. Debby
became a special needs teacher because her son, Joe, was born with
Asperger's Syndrome. His teachers and doctors said that he would never
graduate or be independent. Debby believed otherwise, and Joe proved
otherwise. He now has a masters' degree and this past summer, he got
married.

Debby has earned funding
for over 60 classroom projects on DonorsChoose.org. One project was for
touch screen tablets which have allowed several of her students with
cerebral palsy to communicate for the first time.

When Joplin, Missouri was struck by a tornado in May 2011, Debby took matters into her own hands. She flew to Joplin,
on her own dime, of her own volition, and went door-to-door, talking
about DonorsChoose.org to any teacher who would listen. Several of the
teachers she spoke to told Debby about Will Norton, a high school senior
who was driving back from graduation when he was sucked out of his car
by the tornado. What people said about this young man struck a deep
chord with Debby, and she dedicated her mission to him.

Debby inspired more than half of all the teachers in Joplin to post 800 projects, 800 calls for help, for rebuilding Joplin classrooms.
These projects requested playground equipment, classroom furniture,
first aid kits and flashlights, therapy resources like knitting needles
and yarn, musical instruments, and books.

Five thousand people
across the country gave over half a million dollars to fund nearly every
Joplin project. The outpouring of emotion from Joplin teachers and
their donors—the messages they posted back and forth to each other, the
thank-you notes and photos—was something to behold.

At the
re-opening of Joplin schools, teachers greeted Debby with screams of
joy. Many of those teachers had received enough supplies through
DonorsChoose.org that they were able to rebuild their entire classrooms.

Debby
is just one of the unsung heroes using DonorsChoose.org. If you'd like
to support Debby and her fellow teachers, take a look at these classroom project requests.

Sunday, October 21, 2012

Riverside Elementary School in Waterford is like many and their local PTA/PTO raises money for their school to make up for budget shortfalls and to help out kids in need. Their local fun night made for a nice video story which is online at the Oakland Press. It will appear on their local noon newscast and is archived on YOUTUBE.

Wednesday, October 17, 2012

The following story shows how far the allergic reaction debate has gone as an educator finds trouble after lighting a candle in the classroom after being told not to. The educator actually quit lighting the candle when the student was present but the odor lingered and so do concerns about an educators personal habit being mixed with the welfare of a student.

Parent: Teacher bullied student with scented candle

TOWNS COUNTY, GA (CBS ATLANTA) -
The mother of a Towns County High
School student said a teacher bullied her daughter by repeatedly
lighting a scented candle that caused her to have allergic reactions.
"I never thought I'd be bullied by a teacher," said Danielle Nguyen, 16, of Hiawassee.

SLIDESHOW

Stunning Science Photographs
Here are the 10 best entries selected by the organizers of the New
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amazing.

Nguyen, who suffers from a severe nut allergy, said she had numerous allergic reactions during her Spanish class last semester.
After her
first reaction, Nguyen realized it was caused by a burning candle in
the classroom. Nguyen said the school nurse warned teacher Lynn Swanson
not to light the candle because it sparked reactions in Nguyen.
Nguyen
said she continued to have allergic reactions during Spanish class that
semester although she didn't know what was causing it since she thought
the candle has been removed. According to school records, Nguyen saw
the nurse seven times during her Spanish class that semester.
Nguyen's
mother, Shannon Baldwin-Nguyen, said Swanson later admitted to lighting
the candle all semester but blew it out before Nguyen entered the
classroom.
"It clicked. Not only was she
burning the candle when she wasn't supposed to be but she was
contaminating the classroom. So now it's making sense as to why Danielle
has been breaking out and agitated and could not focus on this class,"
said Baldwin-Nguyen.
Dr. Stanley Fineman,
a Marietta allergist and president of the American College of Asthma,
Allergies and Immunology said scented candles and air fresheners release
chemicals that can cause breathing problems in some patients.
"Teachers really have to be understanding of any child's limitations and potential problems," said Fineman.
Nguyen
said she failed her Spanish class because of the repeated reactions and
the treatments which caused drowsiness during class.
"I
feel that Lynn Swanson knew what she was doing. She knew it caused
Danielle to have this reaction but she repeatedly burned the candle, day
after day after day and knew it was harming Danielle," said
Baldwin-Nguyen.
Baldwin-Nguyen filed a
complaint with the state Professional Standards Commission which
oversees the licensing of educators. The PSC remanded the complaint to
the Towns County Schools superintendent, Melissa Williams.
Williams
declined an on-camera interview but in a statement said the district
has taken precautions to protect children with allergies, including
removing candles from classrooms.
The statement reads:

"Towns
County Schools takes the safety of all its students very seriously. We
do have students in all of schools with severe food allergies. We have
taken steps to lessen their exposure to situations that might put them
in danger by: having our school nurse meet with each school faculty
before school began to educate our staff about the allergies and how to
handle allergic reactions; noted outside each classroom where
appropriate that students with food allergies are inside as a reminder
for all students to consider their behavior; removed all products in
school vending machines that might create a problem; put information for
all parents on our website and removed all candles from classrooms."

Williams said she would not comment on whether she will reprimand Swanson because it is a personnel issue.

Tuesday, October 16, 2012

In a report by WDIV in Detroit, lawmakers have passed legislation that will link student attendance rates with the ability to receive a welfare check. This report by Guy Gordon of WDIV in Detroit will go over the parameters of the program.

Some Oakland school officials speak out against Proposal 2

Two Oakland County school board members
and a school superintendent have come out against Proposal 2 because
they maintain it would do more than guarantee employees’ right to
bargain in the Michigan Constitution.

Katz
said because the ballot proposal is so murky, “If it does pass and goes
into the Constitution, lawyers will be paid for years” to sort it all
out and determine the actual impact on recent school reform legislation.

Legislation that gave school districts some control over costs may be overturned, Katz said.

For example, Proposal 2 could eliminate
legislation that allows local districts to require that teachers pay at
least 20 percent of their insurance premiums; follow new state teacher
evaluation guidelines; and lay off and bring back teachers according to
their effectiveness, not seniority.

Reversal of that legislation,
the county educational leaders said in a news release and interviews on
Thursday, could devastate school budgets by adding back millions in
health care costs, thereby forcing cuts to schools; as well as end
progress made toward improving teaching and students achievement.

However,
Aimee McKeever, president of the Pontiac Education Association argues
that much of the legislation affecting teachers’ unions are things that
can and should be negotiated at the bargaining table, not be set down by
legislators.

In reaction to the opposition to Proposal 2,
McKeever cites the decision by lawmakers and Gov. Rick Snyder that took
more than $1 billion out of the school aid fund.

“How does that
help districts,” McKeever asks. In Pontiac school district, “We are
sitting on a serious deficit and they are cutting our funding. How does
that help students?” she said.

By guaranteeing bargaining rights
in the state Constitution, “We want to protect class sizes and safe
working environment,” just like nurses want to protect the patient load,
the union president said.

“Undoing restrictions on bargaining
would not cost millions of dollars,” McKeever argues. “It would give us
bargaining rights. We would negotiate (those things) back and forth
across the table,” including what premium teachers would pay for health
insurance, McKeever said.

The union president said teachers don’t want to hurt schools where they work.

“We
gave up 6 percent of our salary as part of bargaining ... because we
knew what kind of deficit the district is dealing with,” she pointed
out.

McKeever also cited the fact that PEA and MEA members have
been providing copying for Pontiac teachers to provide material to their
students and donating classroom supplies, such as pencils and paper.

Districts are already wasting money going to court on tenure issues because of recent legislation, said McKeever.

“We
are certainly not anti-union,” said Reid, who, besides being president
of the Farmington Board of Education, is a member of the board of
directors of the Michigan Association of School Boards.

“A number
of laws have passed late last year that help us maintain the best and
brightest of teachers and provide a comprehensive evaluation model,”
which Reid says helps teachers grow and be supported. Also, the
legislation allows layoffs to be done with consideration of a teacher’s
effectiveness, not just seniority.

“When I look at how hard our
school district worked at the new evaluation and the teachers worked on
it...” he wouldn’t want to see the new system eliminated, Reid said. He
said all stakeholders who were involved in the process are proud of the
teacher evaluation model, including the teachers.

Reid also said
the requirement that teachers pay 20 percent of their health insurance
premiums contributed towards Farmington school district’s savings.

“I
don’t know how that will play out for us (if the Proposal passes),”
said Reid, who said what Proposal 2 would “really do is unclear.”

“I think people in the community
all pay toward their health care premiums. I think they would think
school employees should pay for it as well,” Reid said.

Proposal 2 would ...

—
Allow public and private employees in entities of one or more employees
the constitutional right to organize and bargain collectively through
labor unions.

— Invalidate existing or future state or local laws
that limit the ability to join unions and bargain collectively or to
negotiate and enforce collective bargaining agreements, including
employees’ financial support of their labor unions.

— Override
state laws that regulate hours and conditions of employment to the
extent that those laws conflict with collective bargaining agreements.
Laws may be enacted to prohibit public employees from striking.

Students at Brace-Lederle Global
Technological Communications School and Pollack Academic Center of
Excellence in Southfield are the Oakland County schools that will each
receive a Healthy School Transformation package valued at $30,000 from
Blue Cross to support an increase in physical fitness levels and healthy
eating.

The $600,000 2012-2013 Building Healthy Communities
Program for 20 Michigan elementaries is a partnership between Blue
Cross, Wayne State University and the Michigan Fitness Foundation.

Two
Macomb County schools have also been awarded the $30,000 program;
Clinton Valley Elementary in Mount Clemens and Princeton Elementary in
St. Clair Shores.

The Pontiac Board of Education met in
closed session Wednesday to review an agreement meant to settle the flap
over a Schools of Choice issue with Waterford schools.

However,
neither school district was releasing any information about the
attorney-prepared agreement until officials from both school systems
approve it.

The issue arose when Waterford school officials
realized as many as 100 non-resident students are attending Waterford
schools outside the Schools of Choice laws.

It was an “internal
error involving Waterford resident students who moved out of the
district but were incorrectly permitted to remain under Schools of
Choice status,” Lessel said.

Officials in Pontiac were alerted to the
problem when Waterford requested Pontiac schools provide a waiver to
allow the students to continue there.

After the closed session,
Pontiac Superintendent Brian Dougherty and board President Caroll Turpin
were planning to meet with Waterford Superintendent John Silveri and
board President Joan Sutherland to sign off on the agreement.

However,
the process was not expected to be completed Wednesday because Silveri
was out of the office for the visitation of Waterford Police officer
Steve King, who died while off duty Sept. 22, said Rhonda Lessel,
spokeswoman for Waterford schools.

Under state law, only students
who are accepted under the limited Schools of Choice policy published
by each district each year can attend another district without a waiver
from their home district.

This year, Waterford’s Schools of
Choice policy indicates that only a limited number of non-resident
students would be accepted in kindergarten and the Cyber Academy.

Dougherty said the loss of as many as 100 students means the Pontiac district could lose as much as $800,000 in state aid.

Attorneys for both districts were
working on a agreement that will likely cover what happens to the
students and the state aid.

It is unclear, however, what effect
the enrollment of Pontiac students outside the Schools of Choice policy
will have on Waterford until Oakland Schools intermediate district
completes an audit of enrolled students and turns it over the Michigan
Department of Education for its determination.

Friday, October 12, 2012

I think every educator has thought of making a house call. Whether you really wish you could do it or just wonder what happens when a student goes home happy from your classroom and then returns the next day a mess.

There are so many scenarios that it is impossible to get started. Former State Superintendent Tom Watkins is advocating this but in a way that educators can remain educators and a third party helps students at their doorsteps. WAY(Widening Advancement for Youth is knocking on doors, recruiting students and is conducting followup visits in the name of helping students get connected. The OPED piece in the Detroit News (Oct. 12, 2012) is encouraging students from self-esteem to developing skills in tomorrows workplace. Their approach is targeting at-risk students and and combines skills including online learning and is serious about putting a MAC computer connected to the internet. The story is below and your opinion is welcome.

October 12, 2012 at 1:00 am

Watkins: When educators make house calls, a new WAY of learning

By Tom Watkins

The return to school reinforces the need for a quality education —
and it's never been more important than in our 21st centuryworld where
knowledge, talent and skills rule.
A child without a quality
education today gives way to an adult without a future tomorrow.
Whilethere is much hand-wringing aboutMichigan's"brain drain," the
greater fear should be thosewho do notobtain the education they need
andstay behind.
Gone are the days where you could drop out
ofhighschool andstill obtain the "AmericanDream." Without a quality
education and skills, life's opportunities canbecome a nightmare.
We
need to stop the false ideological debate between traditional school,
charter schools or cyber-schools and realize the only adjective that
matters before the word school is quality.
These
factswashedover me as I walked the neighborhood in Southwest Detroit
along with Glen Taylor and Beth Baker, the founders of Widening
Advancement for Youth or WAY,and Shannon Smith, the WAY Academy's
executivedirector. Theyknockedon doors,recruiting students and
conductingfollow-up home visitsto enroll kids while engagingentire
familiesin a new way of learning.
Youheard that right—
educatorsmaking house calls. Today's learningtakesplace around the clock
and around the world. Public education can no longer be"YourFather's
Oldsmobile."
TheWAYprogram is a personalized learning experience
for students who struggle with traditional high school. WAY offers an
alternative approach to education: One that encourages self-esteem,
independence and the development of 21st century skills.
WAY
currently offers their alternative,blended e-learning environment in 11
sites across Michigan with over 100 districts whose at-risk youth have
access to re-engaging withthe learning process, along withitsfirst
charter school— the WAY Academy in SouthwestDetroit.
Once a
student —WAY calls them"researchers" —is enrolled in the program, they
have access to the online learning environment 24 hours a day, 365
daysayear with a community of highly-qualified staff to help out. Each
researcher is provided with aMac computer andInternet connectivity in
their home.
WAY has foundthe means tointegrate technology into
learning, offeringthe ability to fit educationintothe interests and
needs of individual learners. Technology'sunique capacity to support
investigation and researchhelpsbring people together through social
networks, actively engaging student learners.
Teachers are
available online 24 hours a day to ensure that a student
communicateswith a live person whenever they need assistance. Every
studenthas access to a teamleader, who conducts home visits,maintainsa
relationship with the student and their family members,assists with the
identification of local resources that are available to support student
learningand helps findinternships, community projects, and social
services— overseeingall aspects of the student's education.Tom Watkins served the citizens of Michigan as state superintendent of schools.

Thursday, October 11, 2012

The following story highlighted by CNN below is one where girls across the globe do not have the same access to education that girls do in the United States. I grew up in a generation where girls can be what they want to be and achieve the American Dream. Enough girls in the US are taking themselves serious enough that they now outnumber boys attending US colleges and the gap is getting bigger. So is the variety of degrees they are obtaining and the wages they are earning.

That is why it is so disturbing to see that girls are still being denied an education in some areas of the world from having to secretly attend school to the outright denial of attending. In some parts of the world, girls cannot attend safely and have to worry about being raped or have access to education. The Taliban, yes those guys are still up to denying girls from school and in Pakistan, 14-year-old Malala Yousufzai was shot by the Taliban on her way home from school on a bus. Her alleged crime, she spoke out against the Taliban's suppression of a woman's rights to go to school. This is where I will let CNN pick up the story.

Make schools safe for girls everywhere

By Jennifer Buffett, Special to CNN

updated 9:57 AM EDT, Thu October 11, 2012

In the peaceful province of Bamiyan, Afghanistan, girls attend school without fear, unlike in Taliban-heavy areas.

STORY HIGHLIGHTS

Jennifer Buffett: Girls everywhere want to go to school to get a better future

Buffett: Sadly, pursuing an education can be dangerous as girls encounter violence

She says on the first United Nations International Day, make girls' safety a priority

Buffett: We can do our part to help girls by making sure schools are harmless places

Editor's note: Jennifer Buffett is the president of NoVo Foundation, an organization that seeks to empower girls and women worldwide and to end the violence and exploitation against them.

In all my travels, from
Liberia and the Democratic Republic of Congo to villages and towns
across rural India, I have been struck by the unwavering commitment of
every girl to do one simple thing: Go to school.

Just like Malala, the
girls I met know that education is their ticket to a better future: for
themselves, their families and their entire communities.

Jennifer Buffett

Girls would beg their
parents to let them stay one more year in school, struggling to juggle
their household chores with caring for their younger siblings, all so
they can squeeze in one more day in the classroom.

Unfortunately, girls
around the world have also shared with me how pursuing an education can
be dangerous, whether it's because of harassment and violence from
teachers or the dangers they encounter as they walk to school.

Today, as we celebrate
the first United Nations International Day of the Girl by marking the
progress that has been made for girls, we should keep in mind that we
need to redouble our effort to create a future in which all girls can
safely receive an education and reach their full potential.

Malala in 2011: My people need me

Taliban gunmen shot teen activist

Violence keeps girls out
of school. Globally, nearly half of all sexual assaults are committed
against girls who are 15 and younger. Fear of this type of violence
restricts where girls are allowed to go and when they are allowed to be
out of the home. Often, parents do not send their daughters to school
for this reason.

Violence in the home can
also hold girls captive and out of school. For instance, nearly half the
girls in developing countries are married during their teenage years,
with many before age 15. They may experience profound violence at the
hands of their often much older husbands.

But sadly, school does
not equal safety. Even girls who are able to go to school still face
violence -- in the classroom, of all places. A girl may walk up to five
kilometers between home and school in the company of friends or an older
brother to avoid the inevitable harassment by groups of men or boys she
passes, only to receive more harassment from a teacher once she finally
reaches school.

In schools around the
world, teachers pressure girls for sex in exchange for grades. In
Zambia, for example, more than 2,000 cases of teacher rapes were
reported in 2010 alone. Of these cases, only 240 teachers were
convicted. While these numbers may be shocking, Zambia is not the only
country with this problem. Schools should be a safe haven for girls, but
instead, they are too often a place of fear and danger.

However, despite the
violence that can happen in schools, going to school tends to increase
girls' safety outside school. A recent study in Swaziland found that the
risk of childhood sexual violence was greatest among those who were not
attending school, suggesting that greater educational opportunities
decrease vulnerability to violence. Girls in school have an opportunity
to escape early marriage and early motherhood, and to gain skills that
give them enhanced economic and social opportunities.

As part of the global
community, we can all do our part to help girls by making school safe
and making sure they can get to school. Here are a few ways:

-- Invest directly in
girls. Less than 2% of every international development dollar goes
directly to adolescent girls, let alone toward protecting them from
violence. We have made great strides globally in increasing the numbers
of girls in primary school, but until we make girls' safety a priority
we will not advance our educational goals.

-- Ensure schools are
accountable to girls by enacting and enforcing policies that prevent
sexual abuse and exploitation by teachers. When a 13-year-old girl in
Zambia was repeatedly raped by her teacher, the Adolescent Girls Legal Defense Fund
supported the girl's court case against the teacher who raped her and
the headmaster who knowingly allowed the assaults to occur. In 2008, the
High Court of Zambia ruled that the Zambian government is responsible
for protecting girls from sexual assault and providing recourse to
victims. Schools everywhere must enact systems that protect girls and
hold teachers accountable.

-- Empower schools and
girls through provision of safe spaces. One important outcome of the
Zambian teacher rape case has been the wide scale adoption of safe
spaces for girls in Zambian schools.

-- Recruit, train and
retain female teachers. Female teachers can reduce some of the major
risks adolescent girls face in school. They can also serve as strong
role models and help girls imagine different futures for themselves.

The benefits of
education for girls are undeniable. But until we can ensure that schools
are places of learning, rather than places of danger, girls will be
held back. When girls are educated—and safe—they, along with our entire
societies, will flourish.

While the story is done, here's a parting shot. Cowards on a bus picking on girls. That is a man for you in that circle of the world that thinks that way. Shame on you!

Friday, October 5, 2012

I hate these stories and we all do. When a student puts anything in someone's food, it is the biggest breach of trust we can have. I hate the action of those who cheat on tests and then lie about it but when it comes to food, that is taking the action to an entirely new level. The story where a student who allegedly put synthetic marijuana in the food of four students food is not new but just as disturbing. It is such a taboo that it is not really addressed in schools. I think many schools already pass out food by a caregiver such as a lunch person or parent and then passes it out to all students. That is or should be the rule. Students passing out food other than a sealed bag of chips should be policy at schools. Besides the germs and plenty of other issues, the policy should be do not do it. The Channel Four story is below.

DETROIT -
Authorities
say four Catholic middle school students in Detroit got sick after
eating a snack that a fellow student may have tainted with marijuana or
synthetic marijuana.

The Archdiocese of Detroit says three of
the four students were taken to a hospital on Wednesday from Most Holy
Trinity School and one was hospitalized in stable condition.

A
letter to parents says the student who is believed to have sprinkled the
substance on the snack without the knowledge of the others has been
expelled.

Detroit police are investigating.

The school has about 140 students in kindergarten through eighth grade.

Wednesday, October 3, 2012

An awesome feelgood story is the Office Max program that rewarded Beaumont Elementary School in Waterford with $1,800 on behalf of Ms. Reyburn. Principal Jen McCartin took the time with an Office Max spokesperson to thank Ms. Reyburn for her service to the school community in this video produced by the Oakland Press.

***WITH VIDEO*** A suprised Tracy Reyburn, 3rd grade teacher a Beaumont Elementary School in Waterford, when it was announced that Office Max was donating $1,800 worth of school supplies to Beaumont on her behalf. Reyburn is just one of 1000 teachers in the U. S. to receive supplies from Office Max today. Tuesday, October 2, 2012. The Oakland Press/TIM THOMPSON

***WITH VIDEO*** A surprised Tracy Reyburn, 3rd grade teacher a Beaumont Elementary School in Waterford, as Roger Posey, assistant manager of the Waterford Office Max, was donating $1,800 worth of school supplies to Beaumont on her behalf. Reyburn is just one of 1000 teachers across the U. S. to receive supplies from Office Max today. Tuesday, October 2, 2012. The Oakland Press/TIM THOMPSON

***WITH VIDEO*** A surprised Tracy Reyburn, 3rd grade teacher a Beaumont Elementary School in Waterford, when it was announced that Office Max was donating $1,800 worth of school supplies to Beaumont on her behalf. Reyburn is just one of 1000 teachers across the U. S. to receive supplies from Office Max today. Tuesday, October 2, 2012. The Oakland Press/TIM THOMPSON

A surprised Tracy Reyburn, a third grade teacher a Beaumont Elementary School in Waterford, reacts when it was announced that Office Max was donating $1,800 worth of school supplies to the school on her behalf.

Reyburn is just one of 1000 teachers across the U.S. to receive supplies from Office Max Tuesday